Monday, August 20, 2012

Interview with acclaimed thriller writer Russell Blake.

This week I'd like to welcome the acclaimed thriller writer Russell Blake.

1. When and why did you decide to become an
Indie writer?

About two
years ago I saw all the excitement being generated by the acceptance of the
Kindle, as well as the (to me) unexplainable success of some of the
sensation-generating indie authors of the time, and figured, hey, I’ve been
writing for pleasure for years, why not throw my bandana into the ring? I
bounced the idea off a couple of friends, who after realizing I was serious and
at least somewhat sober at the time, encouraged me, mainly because I think they
were wagering about how long it would take for me to quit. I committed to
spending one year of my life doing nothing but writing every day as a full time
job, and published my first book, Fatal Exchange, in June, 2011. That was
followed by 14 more over the following 14 months. Which is, in and of itself,
insane, I know. But folks seem to like the work, and I’ve maintained my
excitement level over the craft, and am now doing this as my day job, such as
it is. I’ve been told it beats flipping burgers, but have to take that on
faith. I think per hour the burger gig may have this beat, at least in terms of
wages and free uniforms.

2. What
genre do you write in and what genre do you prefer to read?

I’m a
thriller fan. Always have been. Raised on Ludlum, Forsyth, Trevanian, then
later Harris, Grisham, Le Carre, Baldacci, etc. With two exceptions – forays
into non-fiction – I’ve written action/adventure thrillers, although within the
genre there is a lot of variation. Some are police procedural thrillers, others
are conspiracy thrillers, and still others are classic treasure hunt thrillers
a la Cussler or Brown. My latest release, Silver Justice, is part police
procedural and part political conspiracy thriller with a serial killer thrown
into the mix, so it can be hard to describe my books sometimes. I tend to write
whatever interests me at the moment, and it doesn’t always fit in a nice niche.
As an author that keeps it interesting for me and keeps me stretching to
reinvent myself with each book.

3. Where
do you sell most books, USA or UK, Amazon or Barnes and Noble?

Amazon US is 80% of my sales, UK is 20%.
Mainly because I’ve been exclusive to Amazon due to the Select requirements
until of late, when I stopped putting my new titles into the program. I’ve sold
a decent number on Barnes now, but nothing like my Amazon numbers.

4. During
your childhood who was your biggest influence?

I’ve blocked
out all childhood memories after the traumatic clown incident (which I refuse
to discuss publicly, for good reason), so I have no memory of anything prior to
high school other than that unspeakable event. The horror never fades.

5. Are
you fortunate enough to write full-time?

I don’t know
if I’d call it fortunate or not, but yes, it’s what I do, ten to twelve hours a
day. I think my output is a function of my OCD nature as well as laziness. Once
I’m sitting, it’s easier to write than to get up and do something else, so I’ll
write a book to avoid chores or exercise.

6. If Hollywood came knocking
who would you want to play your main character?

Wow. I’d say
for my Assassin series, Benicio Del Toro for Captain Cruz, and either Depp or
Di Caprio as El Rey – or whoever is the younger version of them now. I’d love
to have Del Toro read King of Swords. Who am I kidding? I’d love to have anyone
read it. But I digress. And seem really clingy and whiny. Which is why my ex
left and took the dog. Never mind.

7. Name 6
people, dead or alive, you’d love to have as guests seated around your
dinner-table.Probably Vaslav
Nijinsky pre-crazy, Hemingway pre-shock treatment, Richard Feynman, Friedrich
Nietzsche, David Foster Wallace and Albert Einstein. I think it would be fun to
have them forced to listen to me read my work aloud in a trilling brogue while
Hemingway and Nijinsky play the Indian knife game and Einstein and Feynman
debate the odds of one of them losing a finger, while Wallace and Nietzsche
argue moral philosophy in the original German. Everyone can remain clothed.

8. What
one piece of advice have you found the most important in your writing career?

To write
every day, whether you’re particularly inspired or not, and to attempt to best
your best finest every time you put pen to paper – to view it as an opportunity
to master your craft and improve. If you write constantly you create an engine
of enthusiasm for the craft inside of yourself as well as push the boundaries
of your imagination, and if you keep raising your own bar you’ll never become
complacent with your art.

9. What
are your plans for the coming year?

2013, or the
next 12 months? If the next 12 months, I’m finishing up my WIP, JET, about an
ex-Mossad operative who fakes her own death to get out of the game – but her
past has come back to haunt her. That should release in Sept. Then I will be
jumping into a Fatal Exchange sequel tentatively titled Fatal Deception, then
another Assassin novel, then a JET sequel and a Silver Justice sequel. That
takes me through the end of the year. I’ve been slacking on writing the next Delphi and Steven Cross sequels, so those are slated for
next year, with another JET sequel and another Assassin sequel. Of course I
reserve the right to increase or decrease my effort based on my boredom level.

10. And
finally, if you were stranded on a desert island what 3 books would you choose
to have with you?

Infinite
Jest, The Magic Mountain and The Holographic Paradigm.
If the Holographic Paradigm’s view of reality is correct and every particle
contains all information about all other particles (albeit at a less detailed
level), as in a holograph, then all books are contained in my thumbnail, as is
everything else. But just in case it’s wrong, IJ and Thomas Mann are long
enough to take the edge off.

Hi Russell and MA nice to meet you! I'm so glad I subscribe to paper.li (and have one of my own) cause I find new authors.Russell, have you ever written in a character you didn't like, but you had to keep them in the story? ~Brenda

Hi Brenda. Sure, I've written plenty I dislike. I think that adds balance to the books - you have the ones you are rooting for, and the ones you wish would choke to death on a chicken bone. I suppose that's why I kill so many of my characters by the end of the books...